the majority of whom were minors; the value of the Indian land, allotted and unallotted, totaled as much as $12,000,000; and the value of the land could increase with proper development. Odlum also discussed the legal problems related to unequal allotments, taxes on non-productive real estate, the inability to lease land because of a 5-year limit, and conflicting claims of the allottees. The report recommended that the Indian land be placed in a private corporation or trusteeship rather than existing wardship. Odlum's recommendations were not implemented because newly elected Congressman Dalip Singh Saund, who ran against Cochran in a bitter election campaign, blocked proposed legislation. In the meantime, Congress passed Public Law No. 255 in August 1955, which allowed for leases of 50 years. 1959 legislation In 1959, a landmark decision by the Secretary of the Interior equalized allotted Indian lands, thereby setting the stage for developing Indian lands within the city of Palm Springs. This same legislation, however, recognizing the potential value of Indian lands within the boundaries of a world-famous resort, also called for the appointment of conservators and guardians to "protect" Indians and their estates from "artful and designing persons" who might otherwise cheat them out of their properties, which could now be legally sold by the individual tribal members who owned them. By declaring Indians as "incompetent" (both as children and adults) court-appointed conservators and guardians took control of a majority of Indian estates. A major oversight of the program was the appointment of judges, lawyers, and business people as Indian conservators and guardians—the very people the program sought to protect Indians and their estates from. The program was administered by the Indio Superior Court's Judge Hilton McCabe, subject of Golden Checkerboard. McCabe concurrently acted as a conservator to a number of tribal members and an executor, in addition to his administrative and legal roles. Post-publication Reviews The book received favorable reviews from Desert Magazine and the American Bar Association Journal. Withdrawal from publication Following a lawsuit by the Indians against the "distorted, glorifying biography", the publisher withdrew the book from the market. Disclosure of misconduct With the ability to control Indian estates, the conservatorship program fostered corruption among the conservators and administrators—a series of Pulitzer Prize (1968) winning Riverside Press-Enterprise articles authored by journalist George Ringwald exposed such instances of excessive fees, fee-splitting, and other types of questionable conduct. The conservatorship program was officially ended